I'll Be Home For Christmas
by Trilobite
Summary: Karen finds herself feeling lonely at Christmas when Stan out of town for a meeting.


Jack stretched, glancing over at the clock on the side table before looking down at Karen laid out across him. He smiled fondly and slipped his hand down her side and curled an arm around her waist, his fingers brushing against the velvet of her dress, which she still hadn't changed out of. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, waiting until she turned to face him before he brushed his lips against hers briefly.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, honey," she whispered, barely heard above the movie they had been watching.

"Do you want me to stay over tonight?"

Karen paused, closing her eyes for a moment before shifting to sit up and face Jack, "I appreciate it, Jackie, but I'll be fine. It's not like I've never been here by myself before."

"Kare, this is the first year you and Stan have ever been apart for Christmas. I know it must be tough to deal with," Jack said, reaching for the remote and turning the movie off. "Tomorrow is Christmas and I don't want you to be alone."

Karen shook her head, "I won't be alone. I have Rosie and the step kiddies here. Stan will be home in two days. I'll be fine, don't worry."

"If you're sure?" Jack asked again.

Karen nodded, giggling slightly, "Yes, now go home. I know you'll be up at six in the morning and bugging Will and Grace for presents, so you need all the sleep you can get, honey."

Jack stood up, reaching a hand out to Karen to help her up, "Okay, but I'll be over again tomorrow morning. There's always room for more presents."

He leaned down, wrapping Karen in a hug as she laughed at him. He held onto her for several moments before he pulled back and kissed her forehead tenderly, joyful once he saw her smile at him.

He let go of her and reluctantly headed for the front door of the mansion. He hadn't wanted to leave Karen for the night, but he knew she wouldn't tolerate him staying as a substitute for her husband.

Karen sighed softly as she watched the door close behind her best friend and she headed through the entry hall to the staircase, her eyes falling on the large Christmas tree in the corner of the living room. She stared at it sadly, looking between the colorful lights and the many presents beneath it, but her eyes filled with tears as she looked up and watched the golden star atop the tree. The same star her and Stan had used every year since their marriage.

"Karen?"

Karen took in a sharp breath and turned towards the stairs, surprised to find Olivia standing there, clutching a blanket, a bear, and her hair poking out in every possible direction.

"What are you doing up, Curly? You should be in bed at this hour," she snapped, not in any mood to deal with anyone.

"I miss Daddy. He won't be home for Christmas," Olivia mumbled, pouting miserably as she looked up at Karen.

Karen sighed irritably, "There's nothing I can do about that, honey. You know he won't be home for two more days."

"But he's never been away from us on Christmas day and it just seems so wrong that he won't be here with us," Olivia whined and Karen could see the tears in her eyes, even at the distance they stood from each other.

"I'm sorry, Liv, but he had a business meeting that couldn't be cancelled," Karen explained, exasperated. "Go upstairs and go back to bed. It's late and your father would be pissed to see you up at this hour. Don't think I'm going to bend the rules since he's gone."

"Karen, I--" Olivia cut herself off, seeing Karen's stern glare directed at her. "Will you at least tuck me in?"

Karen sighed again and came up the stairs to join Olivia, while gesturing above her, "Fine. Just get in bed so we don't keep having this pointless conversation any longer than possible."

She followed her step-daughter to the girl's bedroom and she quickly helped Olivia into her bed and brought the covers up to her neck, only leaving Olivia's face and red curls showing.

"Goodnight, shorty," Karen muttered, even as a soft smile graced her features. She flipped the switch and plunging the room into darkness before heading into her own bedroom.

She eyed her large bed sadly, knowing she'd be sleeping there alone during the night. She shook her head and turned away, stepping out of her heels on her way into her closet, which was eerily empty. With her staff around, as well as Stan and the kids, she rarely seemed to feel alone in the mansion, but she knew she was feeling lonely already.

She stripped off her dress and hung it up while seeking out her nightgown and slipping it on. She took her hair down and surveyed herself in the full-length mirror, turning away shortly and going back into her bedroom.

She made herself comfortable in her bed, but she knew she wasn't going to get much sleep. Her eyes darted to her bedside table and she smiled slightly, seeing a romance novel she had started the previous day. Rolling her eyes, she reached for it and pulled the bookmark out, skimming over the page to where she had last left off. Her free hand reached for her glasses and she slipped them on, quickly engrossed in the cheesy novel as she kept reading.

--- --- ---

A vague sense she was being watched had Karen opening her eyes the next morning. She nearly screamed as she spotted both Olivia and Mason standing beside her bed and staring at her intently.

"What do you want, rugrats?" she asked irritably, closing her eyes again.

"We want to open presents! It's Christmas morning!" Mason shouted excitedly.

Karen cringed at the volume and opened her eyes, trying to focus on the children, "It most certainly is morning and there might be a problem that is isn't noon already." The kids didn't seem to notice her grumbling and she sighed. "All right. Go downstairs and get Rosario and I'll be down soon."

The kids ran from her bedroom, giggling and talking to each other while Karen sighed, sitting up and stretching before pushing the covers back and slipping out of the bed. She reached for her robe slung over the end of the bed and vaguely noted her book was on the bed next to where she has been sleeping and her glasses were back on the side table. She hadn't remembered taking them off the night before and knew she must have been more tired than she thought.

She glanced in her vanity mirror and saw she still wore the same makeup as she did the night before and her hair was slightly mussed, but fell in soft waves around her shoulders. She shrugged, not especially caring how she looked for once in her life.

She knew the only thing she wanted that year for Christmas was her husband at home and it was the only thing she cared about. She never realized how much she had taken Christmas with her family for granted, but now that a member of her family wouldn't be with her, she realized just how much the day meant to her.

She headed down the stairs and into the living room, where her stepchildren were already gazing longingly at the presents beneath the tree, although it looked like they had been halted from opening them by Rosario, who sat on the couch watching them cautiously.

"Good morning, Miss Karen. Merry Christmas," Rosario called to her employer.

Karen looked at her, finally cracking a smile as she settled into a loveseat, "Merry Christmas, Rosie."

"Can we open presents, Karen?" Olivia asked.

Karen sighed, gesturing to the tree, "Yeah, go ahead."

There was a flurry of wrapping paper, bows, and giggles as the kids tore into their presents, fawning over each one before moving on.

Karen watched them expressionlessly, her chin leaning on her hand as she noticed Rosario enter her line of vision, a martini held in her maid's hand. She took it gratefully and took a long sip, her head whipping around as she heard the front door of the mansion open. She watched the entryway and wasn't surprised when Jack appeared.

"Hi, Poodle," she greeted happily.

"Who's your daddy?" he asked immediately, raising an eyebrow.

"You are," she replied, not missing a beat.

He grinned at her and sat beside her in the loveseat, falling flat when she shifted and resettled herself partly on his lap. He kissed her quickly and wrapped an arm around her as she leaned back, resting her head on his shoulder.

"How are you holding up?" he asked softly.

"As good as expected, honey," Karen said, sighing sadly. "I miss him, Jackie. He should be here with us and not on a business meeting."

"I know, Kare," Jack whispered, leaning his forehead on her shoulder.

"Karen, this one's for you. It's from Daddy," Mason said softly, walking up to his stepmother and holding out a small wrapped present.

Karen took it from him, staring at the label on and smiled softly when she spotted her husband's messy writing on it. She turned it around in her hands and finally used a well-manicured fingernail to lift the edge of the paper on the gift-wrapped present, and slid a velvet box out.

"Ooh, open it!" Jack encouraged, eager to see what was in it.

Karen opened the small box slowly and gasped as she spotted a heart-shaped pendant necklace and matching earrings. She ran a finger over each of them softly before taking them out, realizing for the first time since she got up that she wasn't wearing any of her jewelry.

Jack took the necklace from her hand as soon as she took it out and he moved her hair to the side, securing the hook and turning her slightly to see how it looked, "Kare, it's gorgeous."

Karen grinned, securing the earrings and turned to face Jack, "Oh, honey, I'm always gorgeous."

"Do we open these?" Olivia asked, pointing to the mantle where several presents rested.

"No, those are for when your father gets home," Karen answered, looking over at Rosario. "Can you get them some breakfast and keep them occupied for now, Rosie?"

Rosario nodded and herded the kids into the kitchen, leaving Jack and Karen alone.

"Why aren't you with Will and Grace like I'd thought you'd be?" Karen asked.

Jack shrugged, "I haven't been over there yet. I wanted to come see you and see how you were. You weren't doing too good last night when I left you…or when you kicked me out."

"They were expecting you, you know? I'm fine here with Rosie and the kids," Karen said, trying to convince herself more than Jack at the moment.

Jack sighed, tightening his grip around her waist, "Kare, you're my best friend and I was worried about you. You are not fine and I can see that. I know Stan not being here is killing you and it's Christmas. Whether he was here or not, I would still be here because I love you."

"Oh, Jackie," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. "I appreciate it, I really do, but go see Will and Grace. They know you're coming over and I know you can't say no to food."

"You should come with me over there. I don't know why you turned them down," Jack said.

"I might be over there later today, but for now, I'm going to go get some breakfast and get dressed," Karen said, standing up and placing her now empty martini glass on the table in front of her. She held out a hand and pulled Jack to his feet and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "Go on, honey. I'll either see you later today or call you."

Jack sighed, knowing he couldn't change her mind, "Okay, okay, I'm going." He dropped a kiss on the top of her head and headed for the front door, leaving her alone in the living room. 

She stared at the tree, crossing her arms over her chest and biting her bottom lip. A finger trailed up her chest and felt the heart pendant there, flipping it over a few times before letting it drop back down to rest against her skin. Her glance moved to the mantle, where eight presents sat, two for her, Stan, and the kids, which they had decided to wait to open until Stan returned home. He had wanted to stall a piece of Christmas so he could at least be a part of the holiday, despite being a few days late.

Karen heard the door finally close and she sighed, already missing Jack's presence in the mansion. Despite her wanting him to see Will and Grace, she wanted him to stay with her more than ever. Christmas was the worst time to feel lonely, but she couldn't help but feel that without her husband.

She felt an arm wrapped around her waist and her eyes slipped shut, "Jack, I told you to go home."

"But I am home."

Karen froze, her eyes snapping open and widening as she whirled around in the embrace and looked up, coming face to face with her husband, "Oh my God. Stanley?"

Her voice was barely heard as she watched him, raising her hands to rest on the arms that held her, squeezing softly to make sure he wasn't just an illusion. His arms tightened around her and her eyes filled with tears as she watched him.

Before she had time to talk again, his mouth was on hers in a gentle kiss, one arm still wrapped around her waist and the fingers of his free hand tangled in her hair, trying to pull her even closer than humanly possible. It was only when Karen whimpered softly did he pull away, moving a loose piece of hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. He slid his hand down and cupped her neck, his thumb stroking over her cheekbone and he could see the tears threatening to fall any moment.

"What are you doing here? You--you should be at a meeting right now and…" Karen trailed off, not sure how to continue.

"The meeting was cancelled. I guess the idiots who scheduled it finally realized it was Christmas," he explained, his eyes narrowing when he heard Karen give a short laugh, which cut off into a muffled sob. "Sweetheart, what's wrong? I thought you'd be happy to see me."

Karen wiped at her eyes roughly, "I am, honey. You have no idea how happy I am right now. I think I'm just more confused right now than anything."

Stan smiled down at her, his fingers sliding over the lace and silk of her nightgown and robe as he rested his hands on her hips, "Good to know." He paused, his eyes slipping down her body slightly. "I see you've already opened my present for you. And they look wonderful."

"Yes, honey, thank you," she replied, leaning against his chest.

Stan glanced up and smirked before looking back down at his wife, "Look up, sweetheart."

Karen glanced at him for a moment before looking up, grinning as she spotted a piece of mistletoe hanging above them, something Jack had insisted they have when they had decorated the mansion weeks prior. She locked eyes with Stan once more, giggling at the devilish gleam in his eyes.

"Merry Christmas, Stan," she whispered.

"Merry Christmas, darling," he replied, leaning down to kiss Karen once more. 


End file.
